Helga's little big problem
by Animemutt26
Summary: It was just an idea but like all of Helga's idea's it turned a little problem into a bigger one. Inspired by deviant-art Pink Hitman's Tiny Arnold


Helga's little big problem

It was a quiet morning in Hillwood, but this was to be expected for seven in the morning. The streets were almost completely void of life if it had not been for the occasional car that drove by. Many of the shops were still closed, this was just how she liked it. Helga G Pataki had not really been a fan of crowds or the noise that came with them. She preferred a nice quiet walk, it gave her time to think and sort out her thoughts. But today Helga was not alone, she was joined by her closest friend Phoebe. The raven haired girl had been Helga's only real friend since pre-school. Everyone knew Helga had a reputation for being a bit abrasive, but Phoebe knew Helga better than anyone else and knew what Helga was really like deep down.

They hadn't made it half way to school when a familiar shop caught Helga's eye, Madam Blanches. She gave a slight chuckle remembering the last time she had been there. "What's so funny Helga" Phoebe asks, looking back at her friend Helga decided to tell Phoebe all about Madam Blanche. Phoebe gives a little chuckle as Helga regaled her with what was actually in the so called anti-love potion. "Helga how could be so naïve" Phoebe said still chuckling.

"Hey I'm the victim here" Helga said in a joking manner. "How was I supposed to know that her anti-love position was a fake?", "Well I just hope you learned something out of all that?" Phoebe said trying to give her friend a stern look but inevitable failed as she had trouble holding back her laughter. "Yeah that cameral and grape soda can give you freaky dreams" Helga said as the two continued on there was to school still laughing as Helga continued telling Phoebe the rest of the story.

When the two had reached the large stony steps of PS118 Helga stopped when she heard an all too familiar voice. Looking over toward the playground she could see Arnold. Dressed in his usual green sweater and plaid button-up shirt, he sat on the monkey bars with his feet swinging over the edge all the while talking with his friend Gerald. Helga gave a silent swoon as she stared at the object of her desires. "Helga, HELGA!" Phoebe shouted interrupting Helga from her thoughts. Huh what?" she stammered looking over at her friend "the bell rang, class will be starting soon" Phoebe said motioning in the direction of the school. "O-oh right, coming" Helga said as she followed her friend to their classroom.

Class progresses in its usual manner, Herold boasting to Sid and Stinky about stuff he would attempt but ultimately will never do, Nadine trying to get Rhonda to check out her newest insect collection and Rhonda gaging at the site of her collection, Helga picking on Arnold, and Arnold doing his best to ignore her. After flicking yet another spitball at the back of Arnold's oblong shaped head. Helga began to stare affectionately at him when she was sure no one would notice. Wishing that there was some way she could get close to her beloved even if it would be for one day, her concentration was broken when she heard a loud bang. Their teacher Mr. Simons had just placed, ( _more like dropped_ ), a small projector on his desk.

"All right class it's time for history" Mr. Simons said while turning toward the small projector on his desk making sure it was still in working condition. " _Great another boring slide show about Lewis and_ _Clark_ " Helga thought, she, like the rest of the class had been growing tired of Mr. Simon's sudden fascination with American history. All week he had been showing the class slide shows of any and all things bearing to American history, and everyone was getting sick of it. They all couldn't wait for it to be over.

Helga's thoughts were interrupted when Mr. Simons began to speak. "Today class I have a very special lesson for you" he said in his usual chipper manner. "We're going to look at some art by Evelyn De Morgan, an English artist that lived in the late eighteen hundreds, she made over fifty works of art many of witch-", Helga grew less interested with the lesson with each passing minute, staring blankly at the slide show of art work for what seemed like an eternity until one painting caught her eye. It was titled Love Potion, while Mr. Simons continued to talk about each painting, Helga's mind began to wonder. She started to think back to the love potion fiascoes and wonders to herself " _what if it worked_ ", not the anti-love potion but a real one. It was then that Helga expression turned from boredom to intrigue. Her thoughts were brought back to reality when she heard the bell, signaling that school was now over. "So Helga I was wandering, if I could get your help with my-", Phoebe cut herself short when she saw that her friend was gone. Helga had quickly grabbed her bag and dashed out of the classroom not wanting to stick around longer than she had to.

It was over a mile between the school and her house; the trip would normally take thirty minutes but she made it in sixteen. Dashing through the front door of her home, Helga through her bag next to the living room couch and ran up the stairs to her room. She wasted no time, after booting up her computer she scrolled through site after site coming up with nothing each time.

After hours of searching Helga was about to call it a night until she saw a link to a site that said, the Valentine flower. She was a little hesitant about opening the link on an unknown site, not wanting her computer to catch a vires. After checking her computers firewall she opens the link and finds a picture of a red and pink flower. The site stated that the flower's pollen was rumored to have a similar effect to that of euphoria, but the effects are temporary. The only problem was that this flower was only native to a small section of jungle, just outside of San Lorenzo. She lets out a defeated sigh and decides to call it a night, looking over at her clock she let out another sigh when it read one fifteen in the morning. Turning off her computer she sprawled out on her bed and drifted off to sleep.

The next day Helga decided to head to school a little earlier than normal, thinking that the long walk and some cold air would help clear her mind or at least help her to wake up. Helga's walk was slow as she made her way down the empty streets. She loved this time of the morning, no one was up at this time of day and the shops weren't open yet so it gave her plenty of time to herself. As she walks by Mrs. Verdelho's flower shop she saw the baby rose bush that resembles Arnold. Mrs. Verdelho had been trying to sell it for years but every time she tried people would just say that it looked better in her window. Helga marvels at it for a while chuckling slightly when she saw the fifty percent off sign, " _that thing will be here forever_ " she thought to herself.

It was then that Helga noticed something that made her stop in her tracks, "it can't be" she said in disbelief. There sitting in the window next to the rose bush was the Valentine flower. Helga could not believe her luck and to make it better it was only twenty bucks. School could not have gone any slower in Helga's opinion. As soon as the bell rang signaling the end of school and her torment she ran straight to Mrs. Verdelho's. Helga wasted no time in purchasing the plant, making her way back home she began working on the love potion. She already had all of the ingredients required, many of which she acquired at Mrs. Verdelho's and the rest from an herb shop a few blocks away.

" _I'll need something to make it in, can't use the kitchen pots_ " she thought remembering that Miriam had forgot to clean them… again! She snapped her fingers remembering that Olga had an old chemistry set. Bob had got it for her when she was in the fourth grade only using it once for a science fair project, which she won. It didn't take her long to find it, Olga kept her room well organized, the only trait that Helga liked about her sister because it made it easy for her to steel from her room.

The proses didn't take much time for her to complete, she was able to find a recipe with simple enough instruction online. Helga had nearly completed her potion the only step left was to add the catalyst itself. Reaching over to her bag she pulled out the flower "Well here goes nothing" she said as she tilted the flower over and collected the equivalent of two drops of pollen. " _Two drops of pollen right? Yeah it'll be fine_ " she thought as she finished the final step.

She watched as her concoction began to change color from a dingy pink to a bright purple. "Now how am I going to get him to drink it?" She wandered as her thoughts began to drift, looking at her clock she realized it was later than she thought. "I'll worry about that in the morning" Helga said as she began to drift off to sleep.

BEEP…BEEP…BEEP! Helga shot up from her chair, the sudden noise of her alarm clock was not an agreeable one to wake up to. Slamming her fist on the snooze button, she contemplating throwing it out in the trash. Her eyes went wide when she saw what time it was, she was going to be late for school. Poring the potion into an empty water bottle she stuffed it as well as her books in her bag and dashed out the door.

Helga finally made it to school, missing the bus she had to run the whole way. When Helga arrived she stopped outside the classroom to catch her breath before apologizing to Mr. Simons for her late entry. As the hours slowly passed, Helga could barely focused on the lesson Mr. Simmons was trying to teach. She began to wander, " _Is this right, even if it is temporary, would it be real? Would he still feel the same even after it wears off? Would he be ok if he knew what I did_?" After ten minutes of going back and forth she came to a decision, Helga could not go through with it, feeling that it wouldn't be real love and if she truly loved him it would have to be his choice. When lunch rolled around all the kids filed out of the classroom grabbing their lunch boxes and headed towered the cafeteria, save for one.

"Helga are you coming" Phoebe asked realizing that her friend was still seated, "Hm no that's okay you go ahead I'm not really hungry today" it wasn't so much what Helga said but how she said it. She sounded tired believing that she wanted to stay behind so she could take a nap in the classroom she smiled to her friend as she left.

Walking over to the trash Helga reached into her bag intending to find the potion and dispose of it. Helga's eyes went wide in panic, the bottle was gone! Franticly she turned her bag inside-out but she did not find the bottle but instead a hole, there was only one conclusion she could think of… she lost it! Either outside on the playground or somewhere in the school, but she had to find it before someone else did.

The cafeteria had been more alive with the constant chatter of kids than it had in the past few days. Word of the upcoming three day weekend spread quickly as almost all of the student body were talking what they were going to do with their extra day off. Gerald was walking across the lunch room with Arnold, food trays in hand. They past the table where three of Arnold's friends as well as the biggest trouble makers in school Harold, Sid, and Stinky. Sid and Stinky were sitting at the table trying their best to ignore their portly companion. Harold on the other hand was standing on his chair laughing hysterically. Arnold and Gerald were more than a little curious about what it was that Harold found so funny.

Holding what looked to be a small bottle of purple fizz, Harold was daring Stinky and Sid to drink it. Both of whom were more than a little hesitant to do so. Stating that it wouldn't be a good idea to drink something he found in the hall. Herald's gaze fell on Arnold as he and Gerald passed his table, "hey Arnold!" Herald shouted. Jumping off his chair he made his way to Arnold. Standing in the middle of the cafeteria, he shoved the purple drink in Arnold's face. "Hey Arnold I dare you to drink this" he said holding out only inches away from his face.

"Umm Harold I don't think that it's a good idea to drink something you found off the ground" Arnold said trying not to get pulled into another one of Harold's dares. Herald became more determined to get him to drink it. "Come on Arnold what's the worst that can happen?" "Not helping Sid" Gerald glared.

"What's wrong Aaaarnold" Harold said in a mocking tone "Afraid that it will remind you of your grandma's cooking" he always knew how to get under Arnold's skin, weather it was mocking his football-shaped head or his tasted in clothes. But even he had to know that was crossing the line. Arnold said nothing as he snatched the bottle from Harold's hand and drank it in one gulp. "Dude!" where the only words that was heard as he crushed the plastic bottle in his hand and through it at Heralds feet. Opening his mouth ready to scold Harold for that crack about his grandma he was suddenly stopped.

"Arnold are you ok" Gerald said, Arnold began to feel light headed; his vision became blurred as the room started to spin. "Man you don't look so good Arnold" Sid said "I'm f-fine" Arnold stammered, but Arnold felt far from fine. He started to feel like his stomach was doing flips. Turning on his heels Arnold rushed out of the lunch room, Harold began to laugh as if it where the funniest thing he'd seen. "AHAHAHA Arnolds going to puke". "Man I hope Arnolds going to be all right" Stinky said with a hint of concern in his voice. "Come on Stink it's just soda… right?" Sid asked.

"Where is it" Helga said still retracing her steps trying to find the bottle before someone else did. She had been searching everywhere she could think of, the halls, the classroom, even the bathrooms, girls and boys but still came up empty.

As she turned the corner in the empty hall she was sent falling backward, she looked up ready to snap at whomever it was that crashed into her, "Arnold!" Helga said in surprise, no matter how many time he would run into her you'd think she would be used to it. "Watch where you're going football-head some of us are trying to walk here" she said trying to act like her usual self. "S-sorry Helga" was all he could muster as whatever was happening to him was starting to feel worse. His head had stops spinning but his body now felt like it was burning up. Helga took notice that something was off with Arnold as he would normally brush himself off and be on his way. But he hadn't moved since he hit the ground. "What's up with you" Helga asked, she tried her best not to sound concerned which was not easy considering Arnold's sudden odd behavior.

When Arnold didn't respond she held out her hand attempting to help him up. "Arnold?" Helga couldn't help the sound of concern in her voice. When she took his hand she could feel his skin was hot to the touch and his face was covered sweat. "S-sorry I guess I m-must be coming down with something" Arnold tried to play it off as though it were no big deal, he didn't like to worry people. "H-hey Helga what were you doing j-just now?" He asked in an attempt to divert the conversation.

"W-who me I-I was uh looking for my uh wallet! Yeah that's right I lost it" Helga said sounding a little nervous "Your wallet?" Arnold asked still feeling woozy "yeah my wallet Arnold-o" Helga said in a snide tone, she didn't mean to say it like that but she couldn't help it. "Sorry Helga I'm just feeling a little…" but before Arnold could say anything farther he was hit with a feeling like his body was set on fire.

Helga's eyes went wide in panic as Arnold fell to the ground on his hands and knees gasping for air. "ARNOLD!" she cried as Arnold's body started to contract right before her eyes. " _What the heck is going on here_!" she thought as he disappeared right in front of her. Only his shirt, shoes and pants were left behind. Helga started to panic, having no clue as to what happened just now, her mind began to race. Did he melt, spontaneously combust, what? She began to tear up at the thought of Arnold being gone until her eyes were drawn to something moving under his shirt. Hesitantly she lifts the plaid button-up shirt, there she found a very small, very naked Arnold. She quickly turns her head the other way, her face a now bright red when she heard his tiny voice shout "Helga don't look!"

Helga began to panic as she hears footsteps not too far away, thinking quickly she scooped up the unclothed Arnold and his cloths and ran for it. Arnold protesting all the while she made her way out the front doors of the school and down the street. "Helga where are you taking me?" he says poking his head out of her shirt pocket. "To my house shorty" she said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Your house… why your house?", "Would you rather I left you back there to get stepped on" she says still not wishing to making eye contact. "I mean why not my house" he asked. Helga began to slow down; thinking about what he had just said, " _Arnold wants me to go to his house and maybe up to his room, oh be still my heart. No get a hold of yourself Helga, what if someone were to see him like this, then they'd know it was me. No, not happening_ ". "Ok tiny do you want to explain this to your grandparents, and how may I asked do you think the rest of your boarding house family react to your new look?" Arnold thought for a minute, she was right, there was always someone at the boarding house so there wouldn't be any privacy. And as knowledgeable as his grandparents were he doubted they could fix this. "Not well…" he said in defeat. "But… umm could you please… get me some cloths Helga" he said in a timid voice.

Helga nearly tripped when he spoke; she had almost forgotten that he was still naked. Her face turned a brighter red realizing that only a small amount of cloth separated his naked body from hers. "F-fine I'll see what I can do"

They soon arrive at Helga's house; she opened her front door without a word and made her way up to her room. "Hey Helga aren't you worried about your parents?" Arnold asked in a hushed tone masking sure not to be seen. "Not really" she said as she climbed the stairs. "Bob's at work and Miriam's either at the store or passed out on the couch" she said in a disappointing tone. "Besides it's not like it would matter even if they were home anyway".

Helga closed the door to her room and began to lock it, so no one would barge in unexpected. When Helga went to grab Arnold from her pocket she stopped remembering his little clothing problem. Going into her top dresser drawer she pulled out a Paddington bear plushy; it was a something she had since she was five but could never bring herself to through it out. She removed the blue trench coat and handed it to Arnold since he was about the same size and placed him on her desk when she was sure he was decent.

"Alright football-head how did this happen" Helga asks as Arnold fastens the small blue coat. "I don't know Helga one minuet I'm normal size and the next I'm the size of a mouse" Arnold said "well did you come in contact with anything unusual, food, industrial waste, gamma-rays, you piss off a gypsy?" she asked wanting some explanation as to how this happened. "I don't think s…" Arnold stops for a moment, remembering the dare he had with Harold. "Arnold are you completely brain dead, I mean how could… why…?" Helga was at a loss for words, " _how could someone be that dense, but at least I know what happened to my potion_?" She thought. Arnold was too embarrassed to reply.

Helga decided the best course of action would be to revisit the recipe and find out where she went wrong, or maybe find a way to undo this. Turning to her computer she began researching the recipe she used.

"Find anything yet?" Arnold asked "nothing yet, I've been over a dozen web sites and I still can't figure out how this happened" Helga lied. She had looked over the recipe a dozen times but still couldn't figure out what went wrong. "Maybe I could have a look, perhaps a fresh pair of eyes could-", "T-that's ok I'm good" Helga said nervously cutting him off. Arnold was a bit taken back by her sudden shift in tone. "Helga are you ok?" he asked with a hint of suspicion in his voice. "Yeah fine why do you ask it's not like I had anything to do with this" she fumbled "I didn't say you did Helga". " _Oh way to go Helga, anything else you want to blurt out, your pin number, your bra size, maybe where you keep his shrine?_ " she said mentally slapping herself. "Helga what's going on" he asked, when Helga looked over to him she could see a stern look on his face. And she knew he wouldn't let this go until he got an answer.

Taking a deep breath Helga took a minute to gather her thoughts, " _Ok might as well tell him, Hang-on! Who says it has to be the whole truth_ " she thought. It only took Helga five minutes to tell Arnold the whole story, but she had left out a few details like what it really did and who it was really for and instead told him that it was supposed to be perfume.

"Perfume Helga, you?" he says sounding a little skeptical. "Pardon!? What's wrong with me wanting to wear perfume?" Helga raised her eyebrow as she look over at him. "Nothing it's just you're not that type of girl" he said not realizing the scowl forming on her face. "And just what type am I Arnold-o? I'm not girly enough to like perfume is that it?" Helga knew he didn't mean what he said but it still hurt nonetheless.

She knew she wasn't the prettiest girl in Arnold's life and when it came to looks she wasn't on the same level as girls like Rhonda or Lila "No that's not-" Arnold had now realized what he had done, "Or is it only pretty girls where perfume, not ugly girls like me is that it?" Helga looked like she was about to burst and Arnold's size did not make him feel any better. Without thinking he said the only thing that came to mind "No I think you're very petty". Helga froze, her expression wasn't angry anymore. Arnold's words completely caught her off guard, she didn't imagine it, did she? Arnold had just said he thought she was pretty. "Helga?" his voice snapped her back to reality. Helga shook her head "Y-yeah whatever Football-head just forget it" she said trying to pretend like she was still mad as she went back to her computer.

The two teens had been sitting in silence for what felt like hours. "Hey Arnold" Helga said deciding to break the silence "It's late what do yah say we pick this up in the morning" Arnold looked out the window and could see the sun had long since set. "Yeah I guess it is rather late… Oh shoot! My grandparents I need to call them, I got to tell… what am I going to tell them?" "Arnold!" Helga shouted, stopping Arnold's little panic attack before it went into full on melt down. "Calm down, just call them and say that you're staying over at Gerald's" she said trying her best to calm him down. "I don't know Helga" he said rubbing the back of his neck, Arnold never really liked lying, epically to his grandparents. "Do you want to tell them the truth?" Arnold froze as he thought of the implications of what that meant, "how about we tell them that you're standing in a girl's room wherrying nothing but a blue overcoat" Arnold's face went completely red, as much as he did not like to lie he did not want to explain his current attire either.

It was almost ten and Helga had already gone in the bathroom to shower and change. She let Arnold uses her phone she kept in her room in order to call his grandparents and tell them he would be sleeping over at Gerald's. Helga retuned shortly after Arnold finished his call. When she returned she was already dressed for bed. It didn't take long for Arnold to become aware that Helga had returned from her shower. Helga's attire had changed over the years to something a bit more mature. Gone where her old pink footy pajamas to something a bit more fitting for her age as well as comfy. Her new look was that of a lager blue plaid button-up shirt and a pair of white boxer shorts. Her shirt looked like it was made for a boy, as it was not as form fitting for someone of her size. When Arnold saw her his eyes almost fell out of his head. To make matters worse for Arnold, Helga had let her hair down.

"So how'd it go?" she said in a hushed tone as she had not yet closed the door and didn't want anyone to hear. Arnold shook his head in an attempt to regain his focus "I got Grandma" "is that bad?" Helga asked locking the door behind her. She had met Arnold's grandma a couple of times and while everyone else thought she was crazy Helga always thought her to be fun. "So who was she today?" Helga asked more than a little curious "She's Guana, so that means she'll probably tell grandpa I'm on Safari". Arnold looked up at Helga seeing an amused smile appear on her face as she let out a few giggles. It was one of the rare moments in which he could see her actually smile, and couldn't help but let his mind wander a bit " _I think you're pretty_ ", at that moment that he realized something. "Helga where exactly am I going to sleep?" he asked anxiously "In here with me" Helga Paused, realizing what she had just said her face began to turn bright red. When she turned toward Arnold she could see his face had also turned red as well.

Thinking fast Helga looked around her room for something to turn into a make-shift bed, her eyes land on one of her slippers. Stuffing it with one of her clean sox as a make-shift blanket and places it next to him on her desk. "Here; I know it's not the ideal bed, but it's the best I can do for you" Arnold looks up and see's the kindness in her eyes. "It's ok, see perfect fit" he says as he slid into the slipper. Arnold and Helga said nothing to each other as they drifted off to sleep.

The next day was Saturday much to Arnold and Helga's relief. Arnold had been awoken by the sound of Helga entering the room. She had just come back from taking a shower and her hair was still slightly wet, wearing only a towel wrapped around her chest. "Arnold are you awake?" she said as she peered her head through her bedroom door. Arnold sat up as he wiped the sleep from his eyes ready to greet her but immediately hid his head under the sock blushing at the site of Helga wearing only a bath towel. She couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle at how cute she thought his shyness was. Going into her closet to change she emerges a few minutes later wearing a white long sleeve t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. She didn't put her hair into her traditional pigtails but instead decided to tie it into a pony-tail.

"Alright short stack I'm dressed you can stop hiding, so what should we do now?" Helga still having no idea what their next course of action should be, Arnold on the other hand had only one thought running through his mind. "Say… Helga… do you think you could umm… find me some pants?" he said with a slight blush. Helga's face did the same remembering what he was wearing or not wearing underneath that coat. "H-Hang on I think I may have an idea"

Helga had not been gone long, she had managed to find some old boxes they kept in the garage and found some of Olga's old handmade dolls. Laying the dolls clothes in front of Arnold she proceeded to leave, letting him change in privacy. Once Helga had closed the bedroom door she ran down stairs to the kitchen phone. "Hey it's me; I need your help, how fast can you get hear?"

Helga returned a few minutes later to find Arnold dressed in a small green shirt and a pair of dark blue pants. "Well how do I look?" He sounded almost excited as if he were about to go somewhere special. Helga thought for a moment and saw this as her chance to have a little fun. Leaning in closely she spoke in a very seductive tone "I'd say you look good enough to eat gumdrop" Her words had almost made Arnold's heart jump out of his chest. However Helga was unable to hold back her laughter as she began to burst out in her usual mocking tone "Ha ha I'm just messing with you football-head relax". Trying to play it off as if it nothing Arnold shook his head only replying with his usual "whatever you say Helga".

The two sat in quiet content for what felt like hours watching mindless video's on the computer unable to think of any other way to reverse Arnold's current state. Helga's mind began to wonder as she thought about how they were going to explain this to their parents if she couldn't get him back to normal. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard her father calling her from down stairs "HEY OLGA YOUR LITTLE FRIENDS AT THE DOOR!" Helga just rolled her eyes at her father forgetting that her name was not Olga. "It's Helga Bob, you think after fifteen years he'd get it right" she said under her breath.

"Helga?" Arnold spoke in a concerned tone as Helga got up to go down stairs, "relax football-head it's probably just Phoebe, I called her this morning and asked for her help, besides if anyone has got the know-how to help its Phoebe". "I hope you're right Helga" he said in a hushed tone as he watched Helga closed the door behind her.

Helga's footsteps seemed to feel a little lighter as she descended the stairs. Upon opening the front door she was immediately thrown back by the sudden force of her friend. "Helga!" she said throwing her arms out to give her friend a rather enthusiastic hug. "Geez Pheebs loosen the grip, will-ya" Helga chuckled, Phoebe had been worried about Helga for the past few days. She seemed distant and thought it was unlike her to take off half way through school, even if it was Friday. So when she got a call asking her to come over she was relieved. "Sorry Helga I guess I was just a little worried since you took off from school without a word as to why" she said with a hint of concern as she removed her hands from her waist. "Yeah sorry about that but I… you see the thing is… let's just say I had a very good reason" Helga said running her fingers through her hair rubbing the back of his neck. It was then that Phoebe noticed something different about Helga.

"Helga did you do something with your hair?" "Oh yeah I guess I felt like trying something new" Questions began to fill Phoebe's head as she stared at her friend. Helga never changed her look except for only a hand full of times but they only had one thing in common. "Helga, Arnold never come back to class after lunch, Gerald said he probably went home because of Herald, did something happen?"

Helga was not sure how much she should tell her, but decided to fill her in on all that had happened. As the two made their way up to her room Phoebe was apprehensive about believing her story and wanted to scold Helga for doing something so reckless. "Helga what you're saying is not only impossible but it's downright re-", but when Helga opened her bedroom door Phoebe fell silent. When her eyes fell on the four inch tall Arnold she couldn't help the amount of laughter that came out. "Phoebe it's not funny" he said as her laughter did not help his situation. "Oh come-on short-stack you got to admit it kind of is" Helga said as she couldn't help but let out a small chuckle herself. "I'm sorry Arnold, I won't laugh any more I promise" Phoebe said wiping a tear from her eye.

"Alright now, Arnold why don't you tell me how this happened" she said wanting to know how this was even possibly. She spent the next half hour listening to the two each tell their side of the story. While Arnold was telling Phoebe how he ended up drinking what he thought was soda Phoebe kept giving the both of them scolding yet knowing glances. Looking over the recipe that Helga used it took Phoebe only a minute to find the only solution before them. Helga mentally slapped when she realized that it was supposed to be inhaled not ingested, and reminded that it was temporary. "You'll just would have to wait it out". Both Arnold and Helga did not like this idea but realized that with no antidote they were stuck.

Phoebe looked at the clock when she saw that it read six forty five she decided that it was time for her to go home. "Thanks for your help Phoebe" Helga said walking her out, Phoebe waved to Arnold before she left. "He looks so cute Helga I don't know how you do it" she couldn't help but giggle as Helga's face turned a bright red. "It's hard Pheeb's but I can't" her voice sounded tired like she hadn't slept in days, knowing this not to be the case she turned to see the look on her face. She looked sad, as if she was on the verge of tears. "Helga" was all she could say before Helga spoke again "it's my fault this happened". She shed no tears but Phoebe could still see the sadness in her eyes "You know Helga when I was listening to the two of you I saw the way Arnold was looking at you".

She said nothing more as she left Helga standing in the door way to ponder what she had just said. When Helga returned she found Arnold was sprawled out on the keyboard trying to reach some of the keys. "What are you doing Arnold" she chuckled as she resized Phoebe was right, he was so cute. "Um I-I was trying to look for this video I thought you might like but I can't quite reach the keys" he said still trying to reach two of the keys at once but his small frame was proving to be more of a problem than he originally thought. "Hear let me tiny" picking Arnold up by his shirt setting him to the side of the keyboard. "Ok what did you want to show me?" "It's a video about a haunted house" Helga raised her eyebrow wandering why he thought she would want to watch that? "I was thinking since we're stuck here to-together we c-could maybe…" Helga shook her head a few times. Was he really saying what she thought he was saying? "Alright football-head we'll watch your movie, but I get to pick the next one, deal?" "Deal Helga" Arnold said cheerfully.

The two had spent the rest of the night watching movie after movie until it was time to get ready for bed. Helga had returned from her shower having already changed in the bathroom. She closed her bedroom door when she noticed Arnold was already asleep. She tip-toed her way to the bed so as not to wake him, but not before taking a moment to observe him. She could have watched him all night but decided not to out of fear that he would wake up and have to explain herself. Going backing to her bed she curled up in her own blankets and drifted to sleep.

The Saturday sun had risen over Hillwood bring with it weather that was all to enticing to pass up. This made it perfect picnic weather for many who were fortunate enough to have the day off. Helga was not one of these people. Even though it was a Sunday, she wanted nothing more than to sleep in for at least another hour, however the sun had other plans. She pulled her pillow over her eyes hoping that she could just ignore the light emanating from her window. "Helga, come on get up you can't sleep all day" it didn't take long for Helga to realize who was keeping her from well-deserved sleep. Removing the pillow from her face she found Arnold was not on the desk like she thought, instead he was standing on her bed only a few inches below her knees. A little taken back as to how he got there she quickly put it out of her mind when she looked over at her clock, it was almost ten. "Hey their football-head how did you sleep?" she asked through a yawn.

Arnold began to stammer not sure how to respond. It wasn't her question that caused him to pause but her appearance. Her hair was down covering one of her eyes, which were only half open. The blanket was pulled over her chest almost how a child would hold their favorite stuffed animal. Arnold hadn't realized that he had been staring at Helga for over a minute, however his thoughts were broken when he heard Helga speak. "Soooo got any plans for today?" she asked in an attempt to divert his attention away from their awkward moment.

"N-no not really, um you?" he stammered "well I was thinking, since we're probably stuck together for the whole weekend, how about a movie marathon?" Helga said throwing her blankets off as she made her way to her closet in order to change.

"Any thoughts?" Helga asked emerging from the closet a minute later, she had changed into a pair of knee ripped jeans and a purple tank top. Helga paused wandering why Arnold had not answered her, turning her gaze to the bed she could see why. Helga had forgotten where Arnold was when she removed her blankets and had unknowingly buried him underneath. However Helga couldn't help but giggle, Arnold was having trouble as his small stature made it very hard to find his way out. Lifting up one of the corners she found him face down, "tell you what why don't I make a trip to video store and see if I can find something we'll both like?" he only gave her a thumbs up in response as his quest for freedom had taken more out of him than he thought.

Helga had only been gone for an hour but with nothing to do it might as well have felt like an eternity. As Arnold lay on Helga's bed staring at the sealing he started to hear a low growling sound. Looking down at his stomach he realized that he had not eaten anything this morning. " _Hope Helga doesn't mind if I go get myself something to eat_ ". Remembering that Helga said her parents were still at home he hesitated but his stomach was making a better argument. Arnold had little trouble getting off the bed but finally made his way to the door. Upon leaving Helga's room he was nearly stepped on by big Bob's foot as he loudly made his way down the hall. Thinking fast Arnold dodged to the side, but without looking where he was going he ended up falling through a small hole in the floor.

It took Arnold a moment to assess where he had just landed. " _Well this can't be good_ " he thought as he pulled himself off the dusty floor panels. Looking up he could see that the hole he just fell through was too high up for him to use as a sufficient exit. " _Got to be a way out of here_ " however Arnold's thoughts were derailed when he heard a scratching noise from behind him. As he slowly turned around he came face to face with a very large furry face. Arnold screamed, stumbling back he was sure that this was it for him. But nothing had happened, curiously he opened his eyes only to end up face to face with a very curious moues. "Hay their litt- um big guy" he said holding out his hand in an attempt to see if it was friendly, immediately Arnold fell to the ground as it began to nudge him with his nose.

"Ok ok please stop, I- I can't stop ha ha ha!" Realizing that he was in no danger Arnold pushed himself off the ground and began to look around for anything that looked like an exit. "You wouldn't happen to know a way out would you?" without warning the mouse grabbed Arnold by his sleeve and began to pull him down the dark crawl space. "Wait, where are you taking me!" Arnold said franticly, it didn't take long before they reached their destination. Once Arnold felt the mouse let go of his arm he looked around to see where he had been taken. "The air vents", it then dawned on him why his new friend had brought him here, this was their way out he asked for. "Any ideas as to how we get down?" As if on command the mouse had knelt down almost as if he was expecting him to climb aboard. Taking this as a sign Arnold wasted no time and climbed on the rodents back. "Come on let's get out of here, I just hope Helga doesn't see you, she has a thing about rats".

It didn't take long for them to find their way out. Once they spotted an open vent they found themselves in the living room, making their journey through the house a little more effortless. Arnold stopped however when he heard something strange; "Do you hear that?" He said trying to determine what the sound was and where it was coming from. Moving toward the foot of the stairs Arnold's eyes went wide when he saw Helga's mom vacuuming, and she was heading right for them. "UH-oh time to move buddy!" Arnold shouted gripping the mouse's scruff in an attempt to get him to run, this succeeded as the mouse began to bolt across the living room floor.

Narrowly escaping the vacuum Arnold and his companion found themselves in the kitchen. It didn't take long for them to find a hiding place, ending up under one of the cabinet nearest to the fridge. It didn't take long before the coast was clear to begin their search for something to snack on, Arnold realized this must be what his friend goes through every day. "I can't imagine how difficult this is for you" when Arnold could no longer hear the vacuum he took it as a sign that Miriam had finished. "Ok buddy let's see if we can find something to eat" Arnold surveyed the kitchen in the hopes that he might at least find a bag of chips or something. But as time went on he started to get discouraged as each open cabinet was more bare than the last. " _Did Helga's mom just forget to go shopping_?" he thought. Arnold was about to give up until his nose picked up on something. "Do you smell that" he said following the smell until he was sure he was at least close. "Their!" he pointed up, and indeed their just above on the corner of the counter was small plate of cookies.

The two sat in quiet comfort enjoying their banquet of giant cookies. Once his hunger was satisfied Arnold felt it was time to get back to Helga's room before she got back. "I think it's about time we head back" looking back he found his new friend had no interest in moving, working on what had to be his third cookie. "Come on buddy we can't stay here, we need to go" he said trying his best to movie the oversized mouse but to no avail. After about two minutes of failing to get his mousey friend to budge Arnold decided the best course of action was to wait until he was done. Once he heard the clink of cookie hitting plate, Arnold was sure if not hopeful that he was done.

Once they were sure the coast was clear they made a dash for the stairs. Running past the living room doorway and up the stairs, Arnold said goodbye to his fuzzy friend. It was better this way as Arnold knew how Helga felt about rodents.

It was almost four o'clock by the time Helga made it back. Her chest felt like fire, she had missed the buss and ended up running the remaining four blocks to her house. " _Stupid, stupid! How could you have forget to bring extra cash for the buss at home Helga_?" It took a while before she was able to open the door, having to juggle five bags of snacks was not as easy as she had hoped. Stepping inside Helga sighed in frustration. "No don't get up mom I'm fine, no need to help or anything" she said seeing her mom still past out on the couch. Miriam, still feeling a little groggy from her nap stirred when she heard Helga return. "Oh Helga I had the strangest dream, I dreamt that your little friend was here".

Helga rolled her eyes "she's come and gone Miriam" Helga didn't know what but something felt off. Looking around the kitchen her eyes fell on the plate of cookies "sweet peanut butter!" Helga exclaimed as she scarfed down the remaining three cookies.

Her mind at ease Helga made her way past her still sleepy mother and up the stairs to her room. Opening the door she was expecting to find Arnold still sitting on her bed trying to hide. Instead she was greeted with a site that made her heart skip a beat. Arnold is asleep on her pillow.

Walking up to the sleeping Arnold, Helga just stared at him with love in her eyes. Thinking about how she wishes she could keep him, her thoughts are interrupted by Miriam barging in her room. "Hey Helga…" but was stopped by Helga putting her finger to her lips and making a shushing sound. Taken-a-back by this she raises an eyebrow at her daughter. "Sorry I'm doing my homework and want some quiet" she says embarrassingly. "Oh ok sweetie I just wanted to say dinner will be ready in two hours, and I just had to tell you of the most strangest dreams I had about your little friend Arnold" she said trying not to trail off. "Dream what dream?" Helga said defensively "Well it was the strangest thing, I dreamt he was the size of a toy and riding a mouse through our living room" Miriam then began to break out into a laughter. Helga just stood there in shock. "Anyway I'll let you get back to your work then" she said closing behind her.

Helga looked back at the now awake Arnold on her pillow with a look of embarrassment on his face. "Welcome back Helga" he said trying not to look guilty "save it mighty mouse" she said in a scolding yet amused tone "that rat better not be in my room or I'll leave you outside for the birds".

Too tired to really get in to it with him Helga flopped on her bed. Causing Arnold to go flying into the air he ended up landed on Helga's chest. Arnold and Helga just stare at each other blush adoring their faces until Arnold put his hands on Helga in an attempt to get off of her. The sensation of Arnold's hands coming in contact with Helga's chest caused her to sit up rather quickly sending Arnold flying to the foot of the bed. "Sorry Helga I didn't mean to land there it just happened" Arnold said face red as he tried to apologize to Helga. "I-It's ok Arnold n-no harm done" she says her face a brighter red then his.

As the day turned to night the air in Helga's room was a more than a little tense, Arnold and Helga still felt a little awkward about what happened earlier. To make it worse the movie they were watching was Warm Bodies and they had just gotten to the abandoned house scene. Teresa Palmer had just removed her shirt exposing her bra, this made Helga grip her own shirt, being reminded of Arnold's hand on her chest. She knew that it was accident and entirely her fault but still she couldn't help but think "it felt kind of nice". "Huh did you say something Helga?" her eyes went wide when she heard Arnold speak. " _Crap did I just say that outload?_ " Helga thought, luckily she had always been quick on her feet "I-I said it's a kind of cold a little warmth would feel kind of nice, yeah that right" she tried her best to keep it together hoping Arnold would buy it as she went to get one of the small blankets off her bed.

"Umm… H-Helga" looking over to where Arnold had been sitting on her desk Helga could see Arnold looked anxious. He was facing her but he was not looking at her, instead his eyes were facing down. "Y-you're right it is kind of chilly in hear, w-would you mind…" Try has he might Arnold could not find the words to finish his sentence. But Helga knew or at least believed she knew what he was suggesting. "Y-you want t-to share right?" Helga was now the one to face the ground hoping her would hide the smile she was trying so hard to hide. Arnold nodded still not making eye contact. "I don't think there's enough room on this chair for you to sit' she said, however she mentally slapped herself regretting her words. _"What are you thinking he want to get close to you and you say that there's not enough space, what is wrong with you?"_ "W-well if it's alright, the b-bed has enough s-space" Helga's eyes had become the size of dinner plates. She was not dreaming nor was she imagining it, Arnold had really suggested to cuddle with Helga, ok share a blanket, but Helga didn't care.

When Arnold didn't receive an answer he started to wander if she might think he was trying something. But was surprised by what came next. "S-sure, I mean it is to keep warm and all" she tried to sound like her usual tuff self but was pretty sure it came off as nervous. Holding out her hands for him to climb on, she moved over to the bed careful not to drop him. It was only three feet from her desk to the bed but in that amount of time she noticed something, Arnold was smiling, in fact she began to realize that he had been smiling at her a lot recently.

As the credit's signaled the end of their movie Helga looked over at the clock and glared when the time read midnight. She did not want this night to end but she knew she couldn't stay awake forever. Even though they did not have school tomorrow she had to sleep sometime. "Alright looks like movie night is…" Helga paused as her eyes moved to where Arnold was she found him to be fast asleep. He was sleeping on his side facing her, rather than wake him she decided to let him sleep there for the night. Before closed her eyes she did something she knew she could not explain if he woke up. Helga laid down next to him and pressed her forehead to his "good night Arnold I love you".

The next morning Helga awoke before her alarm clock went off. She didn't care however as it meant that she could spend a little more time with her beloved. Turning over Helga was happy to see that the previous night was not a dream, Arnold was still asleep in her bed. Lifting her hand to brush a stray hair from his face she came to a stunning realization when her hand gently touched his cheek, Arnold was back to his normal size. Helga would have been Happy for this except that when she went to touch his face, her hand brushed against his bare chest. Reminding her that his clothes didn't grow with him, which meant he was naked.

Arnold awoke a few minutes later, to Helga's blushing face "Helga are you ok your face is really red and your sweating" he says as he puts his hand to her forehead. Arnold held his hand to Helga's head as it took him a second or two to realize that he is back to normal size. Existed and absentmindedly he jumped out of Helga's bed only to realizes why Helga's face was red.

Arnold did his best to cover-up, (by that I mean he grabbed one of Helga's pillows). Before Arnold could say anything Helga quickly got out of bed and handed Arnold his close that she had been keeping in her Backpack. She turned around to leave the room so he could change in private, what little he had left.

Arnold, now fully dressed exited Helga's room and made his way down the stairs to the front door. As he puts his hand on the knob he paused for a moment "Helga…" he says nervously "yeah Arnold what's up?" Helga asked still unable to look him in the eye or any were for that matter. "Umm look I just wanted to say thanks… for you know… everything". He said with a slight smile. "Don't mention it…" she said finally able to look at him without blushing "No Helga I mean it thank you" Helga's heart began to race not because of his words but because his hand was touching hers. "A-and I mean it… D-don't mention it, to anyone!" she said with a slight scowl. "Whatever you say Helga" he said with a chuckle.

As Arnold began his decent down the front steps of her house he stopped, unsure if something was wrong as he had not moved for ten seconds. Arnold turned around walked back up the stair and did something that he never thought he would do. Before Helga could say a word Arnold pressed his lips to her forehead. After he slowly pulled away she could have sworn she heard him say "Thank you".

Helga closed the door, leaning her back against its wooden frame she let out a deep sigh as she placed her hand to her head feeling the spot where Arnold's lips had just been.

Arnold shuffled his feet as he made his way up the stony steps to his front door. Making his way inside the sunset arms Arnold passed by the kitchen where Phil and one of the other tenets were playing a game of chess. Passing his grandma in the hall she stopped dusting when she saw him coming "Aw Kimba did you have fun at your little sleep over?" she asked. He stopped before he entered his room; looking back to his grandma he gave her a smile "you know grandma I think I did".

The End


End file.
